Michael D. Cohen, President Trump’s longtime personal lawyer, said on Tuesday that he paid $130,000 out of his own pocket to a pornographic-film actress who had once claimed to have had an affair with Mr. Trump.

In the most detailed explanation of the 2016 payment made to the actress, Stephanie Clifford, Mr. Cohen, who worked as a counsel to the Trump Organization for more than a decade, said he was not reimbursed for the payment.

“Neither the Trump Organization nor the Trump campaign was a party to the transaction with Ms. Clifford, and neither reimbursed me for the payment, either directly or indirectly,” Mr. Cohen said in a statement to The New York Times. “The payment to Ms. Clifford was lawful, and was not a campaign contribution or a campaign expenditure by anyone.”

He declined to answer several follow-up questions, including whether Mr. Trump had been aware that he made the payment, what the motivation was or whether he had made similar payments to other people over the years.

Mr. Cohen has previously said that Mr. Trump has denied an affair with Ms. Clifford, whose stage name is Stormy Daniels.

President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer took responsibility Sunday for a tweet that Trump sent the previous day, in which the president said for the first time that he knew his former security adviser, Michael Flynn, had lied to the FBI before he fired Flynn in February.

The tweet caused an uproar in Washington because it implied Trump knew Flynn had committed a felony — lying to the FBI — when he told then-FBI director James Comey to go easy on Flynn the day after the firing.

Interfering in the FBI’s investigation could be construed as obstructing justice, potentially creating legal jeopardy for Trump. Within a few hours, Trump’s personal lawyer, John Dowd, stepped in to say that he wrote the tweet, not the president.

Dowd told NBC News that he drafted the tweet and then sent it to White House Social Media Director Dan Scavino to publish. When asked for the original email he sent to Scavino, Dowd said he dictated it orally.

Yassky and Gershman: “President Donald Trump appears more determined than ever to fire special counsel Robert Mueller—despite White House protestations to the contrary. Americans must begin to prepare for the constitutional crisis that will ensue.”https://t.co/bJ0K0LTIZW

You know what? I’m growing a hard shell. Why allow the media to manipulate my emotions when these horrific acts elicit no action from the bought and sold cowards in Congress? After Newtown? They just don’t care as long as the NRA stuffs their campaign chests. And they can shove their thoughts and prayers.

17 people dead. And nothing will be done. I’m glad I live in a state that has strict gun laws. It’s not a guarantee it won’t happen, but at least people aren’t walking around Walmart with automatic weapons like they do in Florida.

My home town is a few miles away from Beacercreek Ohio. The Beavercreek Walmart is where John Crawford was gunned down by police for moving a toy gun from where it was improperly shelved to the shelf where it actually belonged.

Someone called 911 and SWAT SHOWED UP AND KILLED HIM. Ohio is an open carry state where a real gun is perfectly legal. But John Crawford was young and black. So handling store merchandise was a clear and present danger requiring lethal force.

That day our pathological fear of brown criminals won out over our toxic love affair with guns.

Gun violence kicks our ass over and over but when the authorities show up we refuse to press charges. We defend and excuse and rationalize how it’s not really the guns fault, we brought it on ourselves, deep down they are our protectors right? We are a sick brainwashed battered spouse when it comes to guns.

People have rightly described the Trump rolling obstruction as a slow motion Saturday Night massacre. That is correct, but the Valentines Day Massacre yesterday is just the latest act in the slow motion hostage drama the country is trapped in. The gun lobby and their brainwashed minions have got us all hemmed up in the corner and they are picking us off one by one.

IF THE DEATH TOLL SINCE JAN 1 FROM SCHOOL SHOOTINGS ALONE were attributable to Syrians or Iranians we would have invaded by now.

We are trapped in this country with deranged killers and the NRA is preventing our escape.

There’s also something deeper here. White men who can’t cope feel empowered to take it out on everyone around them. The culture sends them messages to feel aggrieved, blame every one but themselves, gives them easy access to weapons of war with the message they’re taking stuff from you so stand your ground. It’s like a prescription for mass murder. Then, the press gives it air time and the Congress does nothing. If that’s not tacit approval, I don’t know what is.

I agree. It is as if these weak minded losers are cannon fodder proxy’s for a bigger agenda. Bannon jumped to the defense of patriarchy a few days ago, so I will use him. Bannon and other alt-right Svengalis whip these people into a hateful frenzy while they themselves stand clear of the actual violence.

I agree. It is as if these weak minded losers are cannon fodder proxy’s for a bigger agenda. Bannon jumped to the defense of patriarchy a few days ago, so I will use him. Bannon and other alt-right Svengalis whip these people into a hateful frenzy while they themselves stand clear of the actual violence.

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The Sky Dancing banner headline uses a snippet from a work by artist Tashi Mannox called 'Rainbow Study'. The work is described as a" study of typical Tibetan rainbow clouds, that feature in Thanka painting, temple decoration and silk brocades". dakinikat was immediately drawn to the image when trying to find stylized Tibetan Clouds to represent Sky Dancing. It is probably because Tashi's practice is similar to her own. His updated take on the clouds that fill the collection of traditional thankas is quite special.

You can find his work at his website by clicking on his logo below. He is also a calligraphy artist that uses important vajrayana syllables. We encourage you to visit his on line studio.